


Pumpkin Spice and Floral Musk

by Ignis_Sassentia



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Anxiety/Panic Attack, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Falling In Love, If all goes according to plan this should be nothing but fluff, M/M, Multi, OT4, Polyamory, Promptio-focused, Seasonal Affective Disorder, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, established relationships - Freeform, sex mention
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-13
Updated: 2017-12-07
Packaged: 2019-01-16 23:59:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 16,555
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12353232
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ignis_Sassentia/pseuds/Ignis_Sassentia
Summary: Prompto has been dating all three of his friends for several months, but there's something weird about his relationship with Gladio. In fact, Prompto's convinced himself that Gladio probably doesn't want to be dating him at all.Gladio isn't sure where he's going wrong in regards to his relationship with Prompto, but he knows something's not quite working. In fact, Gladio's worried that Prompto might be happier in a trio rather than a quartet.Maybe the real problem is that they're both waiting for the other to make the first move.(Set either post-Brotherhood/pre-roadtrip or in a happy AU; I haven't entirely decided yet.)





	1. Chapter 1

Prompto was never quite sure how he felt about autumn. He loved pumpkin-flavored everything, and it really was an amazing time for photography, with the leaves all different colors. But he never quite warmed up after being outside in the chill, no matter how many layers he wore, and he could never tell how badly the fading light was going to affect his mood.

It was always a sort of toss-up season for him, and this year was even more unpredictable than normal.

He had technically been dating Noctis, Ignis, and Gladio since the spring, but it had always been all four of them hanging out together, or Prompto alone with Noct now and then. Which was great, until Ignis and Noct got buried under preparations for the first of the harvest celebrations and holed up at the Citadel together. He hadn’t gotten more than a text here and there from either of them for days.

So it was just him and Gladio, out in the real world as the seasons turned.

Prompto tried not to worry about that as he crunched through the falling leaves in the park down near the river. His favorite park to take photos. And distract himself from freaking out about his boyfriends. Well, one boyfriend in particular.

He didn’t even know what it was about Gladio, if he was honest. Gladio was a great guy and he gave the _best_ hugs. But Prompto just hadn’t quite clicked with him the way he had with Noct and Ignis. Not romantically, at least. And, really, he felt awful about it. He couldn’t figure out if it was his fault or Gladio’s, let alone what they could do to fix it. He liked Gladio--he really did. He just wasn’t sure if Gladio liked him back or was just going along with it because of his obligation to the others. The thought of which almost instantly sent Prompto into an anxiety spiral. Because of course it did.

Huffing to himself, Prompto kicked a few leaves and popped the lens cap off his camera. _Stop thinking about stupid Gladio_ , he told himself. _Focus on getting some cool pics_.

He turned the camera on and messed with the shutter and f-stop settings to make sure he could get the exposure he wanted. The sun glittering on the river was going to be a tricky background for this shot, but Prompto welcomed the challenge. It meant he wasn’t thinking about his boyfriends, at least.

People passed on the path behind him, feet crunching on leaves and gravel, sometimes talking or laughing. Prompto ignored them as he crouched in the mulch, squinting through his viewfinder as he adjusted the focus. Damn, it would be nice if the stupid wind stopped moving his subjects around and freezing his fingers. Maybe he should have worn gloves in addition to his puffy scarf and chocobo beanie. But that would have been way too smart. It was something Ignis would have suggested.

Ugh, it had only been a few days since they went up to the Citadel and Prompto already missed Noct and Ignis so much it hurt. He was hopeless. Totally hopeless.

“Prompto?”

Prompto bit his lip to keep from groaning at Gladio’s voice. Of course Gladio, of all people, would find him in his favorite park when he was trying to forget about all the awkwardness. _Of course_. That was just Prompto’s luck.

He swallowed, pasted on a smile, and straightened to turn toward his boyfriend. “Hey, Gladio! Uh. What’re you doing here?”

Gladio gave him an easy smile and a lazy shrug with bare shoulders. He wore his hoodie tied around his waist, leaving him in his black Crownsguard tank top, but he didn’t seem cold at all. “Just taking a run. Have to do something to keep from going stir-crazy while I’m off-duty for Shiva knows how long. You okay? You look freezing.”

Prompto laughed and yanked his chocobo beanie further down before replying jokingly, “Nah, I’m melting, man.”

“Uh huh. That’s why you’re shivering.” Gladio rolled his eyes and untied the hoodie from around his waist. He held it out to Prompto with a grin. “C’mon. Put it on and we’ll get you somewhere warmer.”

“I’m fine,” Prompto protested weakly. He was already wearing a thick sweater and his coat. And he sure as hell wasn’t _shivering_. Was he? Ugh, why didn’t he have any body heat any more?

Gladio gave him a dry look and dropped the hoodie over his head. “Just put it on.”

Prompto spluttered a few more half-hearted protests, but there was no use arguing. Gladio was the most stubborn man he’d ever met, after all. He shoved his camera into Gladio’s hands and awkwardly yanked the sweatshirt on over his coat. Even though it was Gladio’s size--aka designed to be completely massive on Prompto--it barely fit over his other layers. And it smelled like Gladio, too--sweat and musk, with just a hint of something floral. Prompto found it weirdly attractive.

Okay, so at least Gladio smelled nice.

“Thanks,” he mumbled as he took his camera back, trying not to be jealous of the fact that Gladio was standing there in a tank top, completely unaffected by the weather.

“You sure you’re okay?” Gladio asked gently, taking half a step closer.

Prompto flashed him what he knew was his most brilliant grin. “Yeah, I’m good.”

They stood in awkward silence for a moment, watching each other like nervous animals as Prompto scrambled for something else to say. Why was talking to Gladio alone so _hard_?

“You didn’t answer my texts earlier,” Gladio said finally, his voice soft and concerned instead of accusatory.

It still made Prompto wince a little. He’d meant to respond to Gladio’s suggestion they hang out, but then he’d nearly had a panic attack trying to figure out what to say and decided to come to the park instead. Not that that had helped him avoid this situation at all. He chuckled self-consciously and shifted his weight from one foot to the other. “Yeah...sorry. Got kinda distracted.”

Galdio’s expression was unreadable as he stared at Prompto for a long moment. He smiled weakly and reached up to rub at the back of his neck. “Got time now? There’s a coffee shop not too far. Grab a drink with me?”

Prompto’s stomach twisted, but he smiled anyway. Coffee alone with Gladio. The idea was both thrilling and nerve-wracking. Could they manage to have a conversation on their own that wasn’t painfully awkward? “Uh. Sure. Yeah. Sounds good.”

“You don’t have to,” Gladio backpedaled quickly. “Just thought it might be nice. You. Me. Talking. Coffee. You know, boyfriend things.”

“I got it, Big Guy.” Prompto chuckled again, glancing down to turn his camera off and replace the lens cap. He didn’t want to make Gladio think he wasn’t interested. He just needed to figure out what the hell was happening. They could make it through a coffee date. Right? “Let’s go.”

Gladio gave him a strange look, but motioned down the path with a tilt of his chin.

Prompto hung his camera around his neck and stuffed his hands into the pocket of Gladio’s hoodie, curling his fingers together to try and warm them up as he fell into step beside his much bigger companion. “So...how long do you think Noct and Iggy are going to be trapped up at the Citadel?”

Gladio shrugged. “Couple days, probably. Maybe a week. Noct’s got to learn a whole new part this year, now that he’s old enough.”

“Oh. Right.” Prompto had forgotten that the prince was supposed to give a blessing or something during each of the harvest festivals, once he came of age. And Noct had turned twenty just last month. That was why everything was weird this year. Right.

“You know Noct,” Gladio continued after a moment, his voice soft over the crunching of their feet on the gravel path. “It’ll probably take him a couple days just to get the words down, and that’s not counting whatever ritual shit he’s got to do.”

Prompto swallowed a groan. He’d gotten used to spending time with Noct and Iggy and Gladio all together over the last few months. Being without two of them for a week or more sounded absolutely awful. But he’d done it before. He could do it now. It wasn’t like he was completely alone this time, right? He still had Gladio.

He glanced up at the Shield as they walked. Gladio smelled good, he was handsome as hell--especially in the golden autumn light--and nice, and funny, and stronger than anyone Prompto knew. So why couldn’t he just relax and enjoy being around him the way he could around Noct and Ignis?

“What’s up?” Gladio asked quietly.

Prompto spluttered and blushed. He hadn’t realized Gladio had noticed him looking. “Oh, uh, it’s nothing. Just thinking. About stuff. You know. Nothing important or anything.”

“You know, it doesn’t have to be important for me to want to hear about it.” Gladio gently nudged Prompto with his elbow. “That’s what boyfriends are for, right? Talking about all the little shit?”

“Oh. Heh. I guess so.” Prompto chuckled self-consciously and rubbed at the back of his neck, turning his gaze away. “It’s nothing. Really. Sorry.”

“Yeah.” Gladio shoved his hands in his pockets. “Right.”

They walked out of the park in awkward silence, turning back onto the crowded streets and toward the coffee shop Gladio had mentioned.

It was a small, rustic shop, all painted in soft pastels and floral motifs. Almost every table was packed with Insomnia University students, laptops and textbooks scattered everywhere. Some acoustic version of a pop song Prompto vaguely recognized played under the chatter as he and Gladio pushed inside.

The crowd and the prices on the board behind the counter made Prompto feel suddenly very out of place. For all that this place looked quaint, those prices were outright _absurd_. Well, at least the place was warm.

Gladio’s big arm wrapped around Prompto’s waist, gently urging him forward.

They threaded their way toward the counter, through the maze of tables and chattering students, and Prompto tried his hardest not to feel claustrophobic or hemmed in. He shrank a little closer to Gladio, though, using the Shield’s bulk to make sure he didn’t get jostled about too much.

Prompto wound up ordering a hot chai with pumpkin syrup, but only after Gladio chastised him for trying to order a small black coffee because it was the cheapest. The upside of his boyfriends knowing his tastes: they never let him get things he didn’t like just to save money any more. Of course, it was hard not to feel guilty when they spoiled him like that. Especially Gladio, with this awkward...thing between them. It felt weird, to let Gladio buy him expensive fancy tea when he wasn’t even sure about what was going on.

They settled at the only open table they could find, a small one wedged into the corner near the windows. There was only one open chair, so Prompto perched in the windowsill, knees curled up near his chest, and snuggled further into Gladio’s hoodie to stave off the chill from the glass. He rested his mug against his knees and watched the steam curl up from his chai instead of looking to Gladio.

“Okay,” Gladio said eventually. His own mug clicked gently as he set it on the tabletop and the chair creaked as he shifted. “What the hell’s going on?”

“Wh-what?” Prompto finally turned toward Gladio, eyes wide and the tips of his ears turning pink.

Gladio sat with his arms crossed, his elbows braced on the table. His golden eyes bored into Prompto with an intensity that could have set something on fire. “How long have we been dating, Prom?”

“Uh. Six months? Ish?” Prompto had the exact day saved in his phone calendar, but he’d always been bad at remembering dates. “I think?”

“Six months,” Gladio repeated quietly. He uncrossed his arms to fidget carefully with his coffee mug. “And we’re sitting here not talking to each other, like we’re on some failed first date. Or like you’re going to break up with me and don’t know how to do it.”

“What? No!” Prompto spluttered and nearly spilled his chai in his haste to turn toward Gladio. He bumped his shin against the table, rattling Gladio’s cup, then smashed his shoulder into the wall, but finally managed to face his boyfriend. “I’m not breaking up with you. Promise!”

Gladio didn’t look convinced. His jaw tightened a moment before relaxing again and he sighed. “Okay, fine. Then tell me what’s wrong.”

“N-nothing’s wrong!” Prompto protested, hoping _really_ hard that Gladio would buy it and knowing immediately that he wouldn’t. He winced and looked down into his steaming mug for a second. “It’s fine. Really. We’re fine. I’m just...it’s fall, you know? It always makes me weird. Sorry.”

“Yeah, Noct mentioned something about that,” Gladio said thoughtfully, still studying Prompto. He frowned and leaned back in his chair, folding his arms over his chest. “But this isn’t just a fall thing. It’s been going on for a while now. I just don’t know what ‘it’ is. You gonna fill me in or what?”

Prompto sucked in a sharp breath and frowned at his chai. He restlessly tapped the side of the mug to watch the ripples in the liquid as he tried to put his thoughts together. Finally, he sighed and muttered, “It’s just that...I don’t know, Gladio, it feels like...maybe you’re not all that into me? I mean, I wouldn’t really blame you or anything--I’m nowhere near as hot as Ignis or Noct or you--but, like, I don’t want you to feel like you have to date me because I’m dating them, you know? It’s stupid. I didn’t want to bug you with it. Just...forget I said anything. It’s all good.”

Gladio ran his hands over his face. “Prompto, this is _exactly_ the kind of thing I want you to bug me with. I’m dating you because I _want_ to, okay? Not to make things easier with Iggy and Noct. We’re all big boys; we could handle it if one of us wasn’t into someone else. But that’s not what’s happening here. We _all_ want to date you. Even me. Promise.”

Prompto wanted to believe him. He really did. But how could he? Things were just so...awkward between them. Gladio never kissed him, never invited him to spend the night, never gave him shoulder massages, never did any of the other sappy little things he’d seen Gladio do with the other two. Well, except hugs. And he’d brought flowers once, when they’d first started dating. But compared to what he did for Ignis and Noct, that was practically nothing.

“Yeah,” he finally choked out, taking a long sip of his chai. “Okay. Sorry. I...I’ll remember that from now on.”

“You better,” Gladio growled quietly, softening the words with a little smile. He reached over to ruffle Prompto’s hair with one big hand. “We love you, Prom. Just...try to believe that.”

Prompto smiled tightly and wrapped his hands around his mug. “I will. Sorry, Gladio.”

“Don’t apologize.” Gladio shook his head. “Just trust me.”

Prompto forced his smile to strengthen a little and took another sip of his tea, now that it was cool enough to actually drink. Then, more than fed up with the topic of conversation, he quickly asked, “Hey, did you see the new chocobo racing game that came out last week?”

Gladio blinked, but rolled with it. “Not yet. You get a copy already?”

“Yeah, Noct got it for me.” Prompto’s smile turned more genuine as they began to talk about things he actually knew about, instead of emotions and relationships. It was way easier to gush about video games and new cutting-edge graphics. And being into the conversation made it easier to ignore the weird looks Gladio kept giving him, too.

Eventually, Gladio got a text and announced that he had to go.

Prompto walked out of the coffee shop with him, wincing a little as the cool autumn air hit his face. Just when he’d finally started to warm up.

“Hey.”

He looked up at Gladio. Would he finally get a kiss goodbye? “What?”

“I’ll see you soon. Okay?” Gladio smiled and pulled him into a fierce hug, completely enveloping Prompto in his big, tattooed arms. “Remember what I said.”

Prompto hesitated a moment before hugging back. His arms barely reached all the way around Gladio’s girth. So much for a goodbye kiss. He should have known it would be too much to ask for. “Yeah. See you.”

He stood outside the cafe for a moment, watching Gladio trot down the street. It wasn’t until the Shield was out of sight that Prompto realized he was still wearing Gladio’s hoodie.


	2. Chapter 2

Gladio groaned as he draped himself melodramatically over the couch in Ignis’ office, his feet hanging well over the armrest and his head in the advisor’s lap. It had taken him almost half an hour to peel Ignis away from his desk, but laying on him like this was worth every second of it--even if Ignis was still technically working, sorting through festival plans on his phone.

He’d never admit it to Noctis or Prompto, but there was absolutely nothing as comforting in Gladio’s world as resting his head in Ignis’ lap and feeling his boyfriend’s fingers playing through his hair.

“I don’t know what I’m doing wrong,” Gladio groaned once they were both comfortable.

Ignis made a soft humming sound and smoothed one hand over Gladio’s hair, the other typing efficiently at his phone screen.

Gladio knew his boyfriend was only half-listening, but he continued anyway. “I keep trying to spend time with him, but he either comes up with some excuse or refuses to answer at all. And when I finally manage to get him out alone with me, he barely says a word the whole time. I practically had to pull teeth to get him to talk this morning.”

“Quite unlike Prompto to be quiet for any length of time,” Ignis muttered. He shifted, reaching for a file he’d set on the floor, then settled back again. “Perhaps he simply wasn’t feeling himself this morning.”

“It wasn’t just this morning.” Gladio sighed and closed his eyes as Ignis’ hand returned to stroking his hair. “It’s every damn time we’re alone. For months now, Iggy. He just clams up.”

Ignis hummed again and rested the folder against Gladio’s head, flipping through the paperwork inside. After a moment, he made a soft, disgusted noise and pulled a piece of paper out of the file. Typing furiously on his phone, he muttered, “imbeciles, the lot of them. Shipping straw all the way from Duscae when it’s half the price and better quality from Cleigne.”

“Babe, I know you’re busy, but could you at least pretend to listen?” Gladio tilted his head back against Ignis’ thigh, upsetting the folder, and gave the younger man a dry look.

“Hm?” Ignis finished whatever missive he was typing before finally looking back down at Gladio. He sighed and set his phone on the armrest of the couch to tidy the fallen papers. “Was that necessary, darling?”

Gladio rolled his eyes. “You’re the one who picked a crappy spot to put your file.”

Ignis sighed again and set the offending folder aside with his phone. “When you asked me to help you out of an awkward situation, I didn’t anticipate you interrupting my work like this.”

“I’m sorry my concern over our boyfriend is inconvenient,” Gladio grumbled. He moved to sit up, but Ignis placed a gentle hand on his chest and he stilled, giving his companion a curious look.

“Perhaps I needed the respite.” Ignis’ gloved hand trailed up Gladio’s throat to trace across his jaw, scratching gently over his stubble. After a moment, he leaned down and pressed his lips to Gladio’s in a soft, chaste kiss. “Now, tell me about Prompto.”

“I just told you about Prompto.” Gladio chuckled despite himself and pulled Ignis down for another gentle kiss. “Which you’d know if you were listening to me.”

Ignis smiled sheepishly and traced Gladio’s jawline with one finger, his glove catching just a little on the rough hair. “Apologies. I’m afraid I’m quite single-minded this time of year.”

“Yeah, I know.” Gladio closed his eyes and leaned into the touch. Noct had called him a cat once for exactly that motion, but he was pretty sure Ignis found it endearing. He let Ignis pet his face in silence for a long moment as he put his thoughts in order. Finally, he admitted, “I think I’ve screwed up, Iggy.”

“How so?” Ignis asked gently, his hand stilling against Gladio’s cheek.

“With Prompto.” Gladio sat up with a groan, swinging his feet to the floor. He dropped his head into his hands, pressing the heels of his palms against his eyelids. “I don’t know what I did, but I know he’s unhappy. He says he doesn’t want to break up, but he’s just so...different around me. I think I scare him or something.”

Ignis scooted closer on the couch and wrapped an arm gently around Gladio’s shoulders. “Have you spoken to him of your concerns?”

Gladio shook his head. He’d tried to talk to Prompto about it over coffee earlier in the morning, but he wasn’t sure he’d made his point well. For as smooth and eloquent as he could be when he was in the mood, deep conversations about emotions tended to leave him tongue-tied and hopeless.

Writing stupid, romantic poetry and leaving it on Ignis’ desk for him to find in the morning? Sure. Easy. Murmuring sweet nothings in Noct’s ear between blows during training? Definitely within his skillset. Telling Prompto how he felt and working toward fixing whatever problem had arisen between them? Apparently the one thing he couldn’t do. It was, honestly, one of the most frustrating things in the world.

“I see.”

Gladio dropped his hands and shot a glance at Ignis from the corner of his eyes. “I ever told you I hate that tone?”

Ignis lifted an eyebrow. “Which tone would that be?”

“The ‘you’re being an idiot’ one,” Gladio replied dryly.

Ignis’ lips twitched ever so slightly, but he didn’t actually smile. He did, however, reach over to take one of Gladio’s hands and thread their fingers together. “I simply don’t see how you expect him to understand your intentions if you don’t make them plain, darling.”

“I’ve told him I want him at least a dozen times.” Gladio sighed and watched his thumb trace gentle circles over Ignis’ knuckles. Why was it so hard with Prompto when it had been so natural with Iggy, and only slightly awkward with Noct? “Just don’t feel like I’m getting through to him. Every time I try to tell him I love him, he puts up these walls. Like he’s just tolerating me because he feels he has to. Doesn’t want to get attached.”

“I highly doubt that’s the case,” Ignis said, an edge of the dry, “you’re being an idiot” tone back in his voice. He squeezed Gladio’s hand and untangled their fingers to pull himself off the couch and stride to his desk. He rifled through the paperwork scattered over the desktop, continuing the discussion as he returned to work. “Gladio, tell me: have you reinforced your words with action? Or have you simply told him that you’re attracted to him?”

Gladio blinked at Ignis’ back. “What?”

Ignis sighed and pulled a small, blue folder out of the bag that sat against his chair. He turned toward Gladio, leaning against the desk as he held up the file. “I keep all of the poetry you’ve written me. Did you know that?”

“Guess it’s good to know you don’t just toss it,” Gladio mumbled, folding his arms and narrowing his eyes just a little at his boyfriend. “What’s that got to do with Prompto?”

Ignis looked at him over the rims of his glasses. “Do stop being so dense, my love. I know you’re smarter than this.”

Gladio scowled half-heartedly at him and waited for the smug explanation to continue.

“My point is,” Ignis said, after a long moment of simply watching each other, “that it takes more than words. You write me poetry and give me massages after a particularly stressful day. You bring Noctis gifts and take him fishing when he needs to get away. What similar things do you do for Prompto? What actions have you taken to reassure him that you speak truth instead of empty platitudes?”

Gladio’s scowl deepened. He sat back on the couch, folding his arms over his chest. “He looked like he was going to run away the one time I brought him flowers, and he practically had a panic attack ordering a fancy tea this morning. It’s not like I can get him a pet chocobo or something.”

“Surely there are things beyond chocobos that you know he enjoys.” Ignis gave him a long, unimpressed look and flipped open the blue folder. He rifled through a few pages before pulling one out and reading aloud. “‘The silk of your skin, perfect in the moonlight, lingering beneath my fingertips, long after we’ve parted ways. The soft flutter of your pulse at the base of your throat, intoxicating and subtle, the drumbeat of my life. The sweet taste of coffee on your tongue, twined with sugar and cream, and the barest hint of our after-dinner mints, fills my dreams.’”

He glanced up, slipping the paper back into the folder. “These aren’t the words of an unobservant fool, Gladio. So help me understand why you’re struggling to find things you can do for Prompto. He isn’t a particularly subtle puzzle.”

“You carry those in your work bag?” Gladio asked with an embarrassed little chuckle. It was one thing to leave the poems on Ignis’ desk; it was an entirely different thing to know Ignis carried them with him and to hear them read. Astrals, they sounded terrible aloud.

Ignis shrugged and set the file aside. “I do. I like to reread them when I need a moment to compose myself. But I believe that’s rather outside the scope of this conversation.”

Gladio groaned, tilted his head to rest against the back of the couch, and closed his eyes. He knew he could talk to Ignis about anything, so why couldn’t he figure out how to say what he wanted to say? At least Iggy gave him the space and the quiet to put his thoughts in order, no matter how long it took. Finally, he admitted, “Guess I’ve been waiting for him to make the first move.”

Silence filled the room for a long moment before Ignis made a soft noise of agreement. “As you did with both Noctis and myself. I see. Do you believe that a wise strategy, with Prompto’s personality?”

“No,” Gladio admitted with another groan. He sank a little lower on the couch, long legs splaying out in front of him, and scrubbed his hands over his face. Leave it to Ignis to make him realize how much of a dumbass he was being. Waiting for Prompto to make the first move would take forever. But Gladio was nothing if not overly-cautious about forcing his emotions on others. He’d learned that lesson young, with an impressionable little sister following him around like a chocochick. It wasn’t an easy habit to break. “But what the hell else am I supposed to do? He freezes up every time I try to talk to him about what he wants.”

Ignis’ footsteps were soft on the plush carpet. His suit rustled gently and the couch creaked a little as he climbed on it, straddling Gladio’s thighs. Gloved fingers threaded through Gladio’s hair, tugging lightly.

Gladio opened his eyes and inhaled sharply at the sight of Ignis’ face so close and so handsome. He attempted to lean forward to kiss him on sheer instinct, but Ignis’ fingers tightened in his hair and held him still, drawing another tiny little gasp from his lips. “Iggy?”

“Take the initiative, Gladiolus,” Ignis muttered, his breath hot and gusting against Gladio’s cheeks. He tilted Gladio’s head back a little more and leaned down to nip sharply at his throat. “Stop waiting. Show him how much you want him. I guarantee he’ll appreciate it.”

“Yeah?” Gladio breathed, a little annoyed by how tight his voice was, betraying exactly what Ignis’ actions were doing to him. Gladio’s hands slid up Ignis’ thighs and rested on his boyfriend’s hips, fingers unconsciously massaging just a little. The problem with dating the man for so long was that Ignis had this uncanny ability to find and exploit any weakness or fantasy that might be used to his advantage--both in bed and during daily interactions.

Ignis shifted, pressing them closer together, and slipped his hands from Gladio’s hair, down his rough cheeks. One hand came to rest lightly against Gladio’s throat, the other gripping his chin and keeping his head pressed back against the couch cushions. “Prompto has been waiting for you to take action for months. Truth be told, so have I. It’s been quite an ordeal watching the two of you unintentionally making each other miserable since we began this.”

Gladio swallowed hard and mumbled an apology, attempting to wriggle his hands up under Ignis’ shirt. How did he always forget that Ignis took precautions like shirt stays to prevent one of his boyfriends undressing him in his office? It was, honestly, _annoying_.

“Will you please put Prompto out of his misery? Convince him that you love him and want him as part of this relationship as much as Noct and I do? Put that brain of yours to work discovering things to make him happy?” Ignis whispered, his thumb tracing gentle, teasing circles along Gladio’s collarbone.

Gladio gave up attempting to get his hands under Ignis’ shirt and simply hiked him further up his lap, which finally put him within kissing range. He pressed his lips needily against Ignis’.

The kiss broke quickly as Ignis pulled back, amused frustration sparkling in his eyes. “Gladio, please. Answer the question.”

“Swear I’ll make a move,” Gladio gasped, attempting to yank Ignis back down again. “Take him on a nice date or something.”

“Good.” Ignis pressed one firm kiss to Gladio’s lips and slid out of his lap, crossing back to his desk as composed as ever.

Gladio groaned in irritation and flopped sideways onto the couch, curling in on himself just enough to fit between the armrests. He should have known Ignis didn’t play fair. Then again, how the hell could he have anticipated Ignis striking such a low blow to get him to do something he already had been thinking about doing? “Just gonna stay here for a while first.”

“I’d be mildly insulted if you didn’t,” Ignis replied over the rustle of papers as he returned to work.

Gladio glowered half-heartedly at his boyfriend’s back for a long moment before rolling over onto his back and staring at the ceiling. Forcing his body to relax as much as he could, he turned his mind to planning the perfect date for Prompto.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Thank you so much for the comments and kudos on this piece. <3 I meant to reply to all the comments individually, but life totally got in the way (as is also evidenced by how long it took me to get this chapter out), so I just wanted to let you know that I see them and I really, really appreciate them.

Prompto wiped sweat out of his eyes and took a long pull on his water bottle. Technically, he had a couple days off of Crownsguard training while the Citadel prepped for the harvest festivals, but a combination of boredom, frustration, and a desire to improve his skills had brought him up to the training hall. He’d hauled out a dummy and spent the last hour practicing the new moves Cor had taught him over the last couple of weeks. It helped work off a little bit of excess energy, at least. And it got him out of the quiet, empty house for a while, too.

Would have been better if he could look forward to target practice with Noct afterward, though.

He shook his head to try and push that thought to the back of his mind as he capped the water bottle and set it aside again.

A soft knock behind him made him jump and whirl around.

Noctis lounged in the doorway, leaning lazily against the frame, and gave Prompto a soft, almost sleepy smile. “Hey.”

“Noct!” Prompto scrambled across the room to give his boyfriend a tight hug. It had only been a few days since they’d seen each other, but it felt like _forever_ , when he’d gotten used to basically hanging out with Noct every day. He nuzzled into Noct’s shoulder, so his next words came out muffled. “Thought you were stuck doing festival stuff.”

“Specs told me to take a break,” Noctis muttered, hugging back fiercely, despite the little paper bag in his hand, and kissing Prompto’s cheek. “Said he could see brains leaking out of my ears.”

Prompto snorted and peeled himself away from his boyfriend. He made a show of grabbing Noct’s face and turning his head to look in his ears. “Nah, looks fine to me. Iggy’s going blind or something.”

Noct laughed, gently shoving Prompto away with his free hand. “Made sure to shove ‘em all back inside before I got here. Didn’t want to freak you out, dude.”

“Think I can handle a little bit of brains leaking out of your ears.” Prompto laughed in return. He pressed a quick little kiss to Noct’s lips and took a half step backward. He caught sight of the brown bag in his boyfriend’s hands, and reached to try and snatch it. “Aw, you brought me a present?”

Noctis twisted easily to keep it out of Prompto’s grip, a teasing grin on his lips. “You’ve got to share it with me. Deal?”

“What is it?” Prompto ducked to the side to try and grab the bag again.

“Nuh uh.” Noct turned again, managing to keep the bag away from his boyfriend. “We’re sharing or you don’t get any.”

Prompto laughed, but fell back. “Okay, okay. I’ll share. What is it?”

“Sit down and I’ll show you.” Noctis grinned at him and shoved him gently toward the pile of training mats in the corner.

Prompto giggled again and skipped over to the mats. He flopped down, crossing his legs and tucking his fingers under his ankles as he grinned up at his boyfriend. “What’d you get me, man?”

“Close your eyes,” Noct ordered.

Prompto whined teasingly but did as he was told.

The paper bag crinkled and, after a moment, something cool and sticky pressed against Prompto’s lips. It smelled sweet, but Prompto couldn’t place it. Hesitantly, he opened his mouth and tried to take a bite. His teeth scraped against it without getting any sort of traction, but he managed to shave a bit of overly-sweet caramel onto his tongue. He opened his eyes again and blinked.

Noct held a caramel apple on a stick in front of Prompto’s face, grinning at him. “Like it?”

“Dude, I barely got a bite.” Prompto giggled and grabbed the white, cardboard stick, his fingers wrapping over Noct’s to provide some stability to the treat. This time, he managed to actually get a bite of both caramel and apple. It was sweet and juicy and perfect, and he was weirdly proud of the way it made Noct look at him. He sat back, letting his hand drop, and grinned at his boyfriend as he chewed. He swallowed, then--because he couldn’t resist how cheesy it was--said, “Sweet. Just like you.”

“ _Prom_ ,” Noct groaned, rolling his eyes. He flopped onto the training mats beside Prompto, the barest hint of a blush turning his ears just a little pink.

Prompto just laughed and nudged his shoulder against his boyfriend’s. After a moment of companionable silence while Noct took a bite of caramel apple, Prompto muttered, “It’s good to see you, man. Missed you.”

“Yeah,” Noctis muttered with his mouth full. He offered the apple back to Prompto. “You, too.”

For a while, they simply sat together and passed the treat back and forth, enjoying the quiet, private moment away from everyone and everything else.

“How’s the festival stuff going?” Prompto asked eventually, licking melted caramel off his fingers.

Noctis just groaned in response.

“That good, huh?”

“I swear, they’re trying to kill me,” Noct moaned, leaning back until he lay on the mats, arms folded behind his head. “I know I’m not Ignis, but I’m not a total idiot. And I have no idea how I’m supposed to do all this shit.”

Prompto carefully dropped the remains of the caramel apple into the bag Noct had brought it in and set the whole thing aside. Then he lay down beside Noct, resting his head on his boyfriend’s shoulder and curling close. It was probably stupid to snuggle in the training hall like this, but he couldn’t help it. Especially since he hadn’t really had cuddles in days. It was a little pathetic how addicted he’d gotten to physical contact since he’d started dating his boyfriends.

Noctis shifted to wrap an arm around Prompto and pull him closer, nuzzling into Prompto’s hair.

“You got this, man,” Prompto muttered against Noct’s collarbone. He took a deep breath of his boyfriend’s scent and closed his eyes, letting himself just enjoy the moment. He’d really missed this. “Just, you know, be patient and stuff.”

“‘And stuff.’ Great advice, Prom.” Noct laughed, poking Prompto lightly in the side.

Prompto wriggled away from the poke, which only pressed him closer to Noct. “C’mon, dude! You know I’m ticklish!”

“Uh huh.” Noct’s wicked grin was evident in his tone and the way his fingers set about to viciously tickling Prompto’s sides, specifically targeting all of Prompto’s particularly sensitive spots.

Prompto laughed like an idiot and squirmed, nearly elbowing Noct in the face once and almost falling off the pile of training mats. Finally, he managed somehow to roll on top of the prince and pin his hands above his head, straddling Noct’s hips. They both giggled breathlessly for a while, grinning at each other like the dumbasses in love that they were. Eventually, Prompto leaned down to kiss him softly.

Noctis pressed eagerly into the kiss, tasting like caramel and sour apple. When they finally broke apart, Noct squirmed one wrist out of Prompto’s hold and ran his fingers through his boyfriend’s hair. “You okay?”

“A tickle fight’s not gonna kill me,” Prompto pointed out with another little laugh. “Besides. I won.”

Noct rolled his eyes. “Not what I meant.”

Prompto sat up, but didn’t move off Noctis. He rested his hands on his boyfriend’s stomach and smiled sadly. “Yeah, I’m okay. Miss you like crazy.”

“Miss you, too.” Noct gently ran his hands down Prompto’s arms. “Only a couple more days, though, I think.”

“Good.” Prompto poked the prince hard in the stomach. “Then we’re playing that new racing game until I beat your ass.”

Noct laughed. “Never gonna happen.”

Prompto stuck his tongue out at him. “I’m gonna do it. Just watch. Might take me a couple weeks, but I’ll get it.”

“You already whip me in shooting games,” Noct protested, gently smacking Prompto’s shoulder. “Let me have the racing ones.”

“Fine,” Prompto agreed reluctantly, drawing the word out far longer than necessary. He rolled off Noct to lay beside him again, this time on his back, staring up at the ceiling. Idly, he kicked his heels against the side of the stack of mats. For as amazing as this surprise moment with Noct was, it didn’t really help the things he’d been trying to avoid earlier. Those thoughts crept slowly back into his mind, echoing around inside his skull and begging to be released out into the open. “Hey, Noct? Can I ask you something?”

“What’s up?”

Prompto hesitated, chewing on his lower lip. Maybe he shouldn’t ask about Gladio. What if asking made things awkward between Gladio and Noct, too? Or what if Noct thought he was crazy? But it was way easier to talk to Noct than it was to talk to Gladio, and Prompto needed to know. “Does...uh. Does Gladio hate me?”

“What? No, dude, of course not.” Noct rolled onto his side and propped himself up on his elbow, frowning down at Prompto. “Why the hell do you think Gladio hates you? Did you guys break up or something?”

Prompto shook his head against the mats and sighed, looking anywhere but at Noct’s face. “I don’t think so. It’s just...he’s so different around me, you know? We can’t just...do _this_.”

He motioned between the two of them and let his hand fall back to the mat with a solid thump.

“Well, yeah. Gladio’s only ticklish on the bottoms of his feet. Makes tickle fights a real pain in the ass.” Noct shrugged lazily with one shoulder. “And he’s way too big to fit up here. Trust me: laying on the floor isn’t nearly as comfortable.”

Prompto glared half-heartedly at his boyfriend. “You know that’s not what I meant.”

Noct chuckled and leaned down to kiss him softly.

Prompto groaned against Noct’s lips. Couldn’t they just keep kissing instead of talking about Gladio and the weirdness that was Prompto’s relationship with him?

“Okay,” Noct murmured as he pulled back and settled beside Prompto again. “Tell me what you meant, then.”

Prompto squeezed his eyes shut as he tried to figure out how to put his words in order. Of course, the longer he remained silent, the more he started to fixate on the fact that he should be saying something, which only made everything harder. The frustration clawed at his throat and he sat up, dropping his head into his hands. Why couldn’t he just talk like a normal person and tell Noctis what he was worried about? He could normally tell Noct pretty much anything, so why the hell were the words all stuck in his throat?

“Hey. Take a breath.” Noct sat up, too, and gently rubbed Prompto’s back, resting his cheek on Prompto’s shoulder. “No hurry here, dude. Take your time. I’m here.”

Prompto nodded jerkily and forced himself to suck in a few deep lungfuls of air. He told himself that it was okay. Noct would be patient with him and wait until he could figure out how to make the words make sense. He could take as much time as he needed. No reason to get frustrated. Just relax.

Of course, that was easier said than done. Though Noct’s hand rubbing gentle circles on his back helped.

“He hasn’t even kissed me,” Prompto finally admitted in a tight little whisper, his voice muffled by his hands. He sucked in another deep, hitching breath and blinked back tears he desperately didn’t want to shed just yet. He wasn’t going to cry over Gladio, damn it. “And all our dates are...weird, you know? I don’t know what to talk to him about besides training and video games and stuff, and he doesn’t really seem that interested in those things, so we mostly just...sit there and stare at each other? It’s _weird_. And, like, what if I pick a topic that makes him angry or something, you know? I guess I just...don’t know how to talk to him. Or, like, be his boyfriend, and that’s...I don’t know, dude. It sucks.”

They sat in silence for a moment, Noct’s hand going still on Prompto’s back. Finally, the prince sighed. “I mean...it’s _Gladio_. It’s not like he talks a lot anyway. And he didn’t kiss me or Iggy first. He’s got this thing where he’s got to wait for someone else to do it. It’s annoying. Sweet, but annoying.”

Prompto lifted his head out of his hands and stared at his boyfriend. “Wait a sec. You’re saying Gladio’s been waiting for _me_ to kiss _him_?”

“What do you think I’ve been doing--waiting for someone else to kiss me?” Gladio’s voice asked gruffly from the doorway.

Both Prompto and Noct jumped and turned toward the door, twin blushes on their faces.

“You better hope Cor doesn’t catch you two eating in here.” Gladio stepped into the training hall and motioned to the paper bag on the floor with a smirk. “You _were_ planning on cleaning that up, right?”

Noct slid off the pile of training mats and padded over to his Shield. He stood on tiptoe to kiss Gladio quickly, then dropped back on his heels. “Nah, we were going to stuff it in your locker for later.”

“Brat.” Gladio laughed and yanked Noct close, easily picking up the prince and tucking him under one arm like a lifesize ragdoll. He crossed the room and carefully tossed a laughing Noctis back onto the pile of training mats.

Prompto shifted to avoid getting landed on, curling in on himself. Why did Gladio’s appearance automatically make everything a hundred times more awkward? And why did Gladio have this uncanny knack of walking in right when Prompto most desperately didn’t want him around? Swallowing hard, Prompto wrapped his arms around his shins and rested his chin on his knees. “How long have you been there?”

“Long enough.” Gladio shrugged and squatted down in front of the pile of mats, putting his face just under Prompto’s eye level. After a moment of hesitation, he placed his big, warm hands over Prompto’s and squeezed gently. “Look, Prom, we’ve kind of had a rocky start here, but I don’t _ever_ want you to be afraid to talk to me. About anything--big or small.”

Prompto swallowed again and forced himself to meet Gladio’s gaze. His eyes were _so pretty_. “Y-yeah. Sorry…”

Noct leaned forward and poked Gladio’s shoulder. “Tell him the thing.”

“What thing?” Prompto asked, glancing at Noct from the corner of his eye.

Noct smirked and held one finger to his lips.

Gladio rolled his eyes. “It’s not like I haven’t said it before.”

“What thing?” Prompto repeated, glancing between his two boyfriends as his fingers twisted in the fabric of his pants beneath Gladio’s hands.

“The ‘I love you’ thing,” Gladio finally said with a chuckle. He squeezed Prompto’s hands again. “Because I _do_ love you, Prompto. And I want this to work out. So...get dinner with me tonight?”

Prompto’s face went hot and his breath caught in his throat. He glanced at Noct, who was grinning as if Gladio had just asked _him_ out to dinner instead of Prompto. Realizing Noct was going to be absolutely no help, Prompto swallowed hard and turned back to Gladio. Gladio, who was patiently waiting for his answer, while crouching in front of him and holding his hands. Gladio, with his gorgeous eyes and his great hugs, and his nice slightly-floral-musky scent. Gladio, who had bought him fancy tea and wanted to talk yesterday. “Y-yeah...okay. Sure.”

“Dude, you sound like he’s going to eat you alive or something.” Noct elbowed Prompto in the ribs. “It’s just a dinner date. You and Specs have ‘em all the time.”

Prompto gave him an exasperated glance and would have gestured at Gladio if his hands hadn’t been pinned between Gladio’s palms and his own shins.

“Oh, right. You’re worried Gladio _hates you_ ,” Noct said pointedly. He nudged Gladio’s shoulder with the toe of his boot. “You better bring him flowers to convince him otherwise, big guy.”

Prompto’s blush deepened and he shook his head. “It’s fine. I was just being a drama baby. I know Gladio doesn’t hate me! He _just_ said he loves me!”

Gladio laughed, squeezed Prompto’s hands once more, and stood. “Yeah, but I’ve still got some making up to do. So. Pick you up around seven?”

Pick him up?! Prompto had just figured they’d meet somewhere and grab food and call it done. Just as casual and not-actually-date-like as their other rare outings. His chest felt too tight with nerves, but he somehow managed a smile. “Sure. Uh. Where are we going?”

“Somewhere nice,” Gladio said mysteriously. “Wear that suit Noct got you for his birthday dinner.”

“Ooh, you do look nice in that.” Noct slung an arm around Prompto’s shoulders and leaned into him, nuzzling Prompto’s cheek with his nose. “Need me to come help you get ready?”

Gladio snorted. “If you do that, he’ll never get out of the house.”

Noctis laughed and kissed Prompto’s cheek. “He’s got a point. I can’t resist you in that suit.”

“Guess you better not come over, then,” Prompto replied as lightly as he could manage through his embarrassment. He gently shoved Noct away and pasted on what he hoped wasn’t a nervous smile for Gladio. “See you at seven?”

Gladio’s return smile was genuine and warm, his amber eyes sparkling with...was that relief? “Sure thing.”

Prompto watched him slip out of the training hall before dropping his head back down to rest on his knees with a groan.

“See?” Noct asked, gently elbowing Prompto again. “You’ve got a date with him. He _really_ doesn’t hate you.”

“What the hell are we going to talk about?” Prompto mumbled into his thighs. He groaned again. “He only asked me out tonight because you were here.”

Noct scoffed quietly. “Bullshit. You heard him, Prom. He loves you. Just like me and Iggy do. Just...relax and try to believe it, okay?”

Prompto nodded without lifting his head up. He _wanted_ to believe it. He just...didn’t. Not yet. After all, Gladio still hadn’t kissed him, even after apparently hearing that Prompto hadn’t known Gladio was waiting for him to make a move. It had been the perfect opportunity for their first kiss and they hadn’t done it.

Well, maybe he could figure things out over their surprise fancy dinner. He could hope, at least.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, thanks for the comments and kudos, everyone. I can't believe the response this has gotten so far. <3

Gladio was nothing if not punctual. He knocked crisply on Prompto’s front door precisely at seven, holding a bouquet of brightly-colored flowers Ignis assured him Prompto loved in one hand. He’d stuffed himself into his least uncomfortable suit, but he still left the top buttons of his shirt undone to avoid feeling like he was suffocating.

The brisk autumn breeze was refreshing and he took a deep breath as he waited, smelling the faint crisp scent of snow in the air. He’d have to remind Prompto to bring an extra coat, just in case.

Which would be easier to do if Prompto would open the door.

Gladio knocked again. “Hey, Prompto? It’s me. You ready?”

Still no answer.

Concern fluttered in Gladio’s chest and he tried to force it down. Was Prompto all right? Had he changed his mind about the date? Had something happened?

He dug his phone out of his pocket and double-checked his text messages and calls. Nothing from Prompto. Weird. Frowning at the screen, he hit Prompto’s number on his speed dial, then lifted the phone to his ear. It rang twice and went to voicemail. Gladio hung up with a frustrated growl. “Come on, Prom. Talk to me. It’s okay if you changed your mind, just...open the damn door and tell me.”

Silence from inside the house.

Just as Gladio was getting ready to start throwing pebbles at the windows in a last-ditch attempt to get Prompto’s attention, his phone buzzed in his hand. He glanced down to a text from Ignis:

_“There’s a key under the mat. Please be cautious. He’s fragile at the moment.”_

Fragile? The worry dropped into Gladio’s gut like a stone as he texted back. _“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”_

There was some sort of loud thump from inside the house.

Gladio cursed and tried the door handle on instinct. When he found it locked, as expected, he took a couple steps back and crouched down to pull up the doormat.

His phone rang just as he scooped up the key underneath. He picked up without looking at the caller ID. “What?”

“Eloquent as always, my love,” Ignis sighed on the other end. “You haven’t done anything foolish, have you?”

“I didn’t break the door down, if that’s what you mean,” Gladio grumbled. He felt a little bad walking into Prompto’s house without permission, but he had to make sure his boyfriend was okay. Especially after that thump. So he fit the key into the lock and turned it. “Has Prom said anything to you? He won’t answer the door.”

Ignis cleared his throat quietly. “He requested that I apologize on his behalf and ask you to go away, as a matter of fact.”

Gladio froze with the door cracked open. Now guilt joined the worry in his gut, roiling uncomfortably and making his chest tighten. “What? Then why the hell did you tell me there was a key under the mat?”

“Because he needs you,” Ignis said matter-of-factly. “Have you seen Prompto in the throes of a panic attack before, darling?”

Gladio’s heart jumped into his throat. A panic attack? He’d known Prompto had anxiety issues, of course--they’d all known that for years--but he’d never really seen them in action. Not the way Noct and Ignis had. “No...crap, is he okay?”

“He does better with someone to hold him. You’re already there. Noct and I won’t be able to get there in any sort of reasonable timeframe.”

“What if I make it worse?” Gladio whispered. All the same, he forced himself to push the door the rest of the way open and slip into the front hall. The entire house was dark, and it felt strangely empty, almost foreboding. He closed the door behind him and flipped on the lights.

Ignis sighed. “We’ll deal with it together, if we must. But for now, I would much prefer he isn’t alone. Feel free to blame me, should he protest.”

“Yeah, okay. Thanks, babe. Love you.” Gladio hung up and sucked in a deep breath. If Ignis really thought Prompto needed his help, there wasn’t much he could do except hope like hell he didn’t somehow exacerbate whatever was going on with Prompto’s brain chemistry. He slipped his phone back into his pocket, set the bouquet on the hall table, and carefully stepped into the living room. “Hey, Prom? You okay?”

Silence.

“Prompto?” Gladio turned on lamps as he crept further into the house. He’d never really been to Prompto’s place before, so he wasn’t entirely certain where he should look for his boyfriend. And Prompto sure as hell wasn’t helping. He carefully pulled open doors and peeked into closets and a master bedroom. Still no sign of Prompto. “Hey, babe. It’s okay. I’m not mad or anything. Just worried. Where are you?”

Finally, a sound: a soft, muffled sob from further down the hallway.

Gladio fought the urge to run toward it. Instead, he walked slowly and deliberately down the hall, making sure he made enough noise that he didn’t startle Prompto as he approached.

The door at the end of the hall stood open just a crack, but no light came from the room.

Gladio hesitated a moment, then carefully pushed the door open wider. “Prompto?”

Another quiet sob, followed by a little hiccough.

The light from the hallway angled into the little bedroom, illuminating the bed, a desk cluttered with paper and books and video game cartridges, and dozens of photographs pinned to the walls. The desk chair lay sideways on the floor--probably the source of the thump Gladio had heard earlier. Still no Prompto, though.

Frown deepening with every heartbeat, Gladio carefully stepped into what was obviously Prompto’s bedroom, following the tiny sounds of crying and sniffling and hiccoughing. He hesitated at the closet door, now certain that Prompto was on the other side, and took a deep breath. Quietly, gently, he asked, “I’m going to open the door now, okay?”

Something rustled on the other side of the door and Prompto sniffled again, but he didn’t protest.

Gladio carefully pulled the door open.

Prompto sat huddled on the floor of the closet in his boxers and Gladio’s oversized hoodie, knees drawn up to his chest and forehead pressed against them, hood up over his head. He shrank away from the light without looking up, wedging himself further into the corner. Hangers clicked quietly as he brushed against his sweatshirts, and he whimpered.

“Oh, Prom,” Gladio breathed. His heart twisted in his chest and he carefully knelt down just outside the closet. “You need a hug?”

For a moment, Prompto didn’t respond. Then he sniffled and nodded weakly against his knees.

Gladio shifted into a slightly more comfortable position and swallowed hard. If he was a smaller man, he would have crawled into the closet and wrapped himself around Prompto like a blanket. But there was no way he’d fit. It broke his heart to see Prompto like this, especially since he couldn’t help but wonder if Prompto was upset by something he had done. He tried to shove the guilt aside as he held his arms out. “C’mere, babe.”

It took Prompto several moments and a handful of false starts to finally crawl out of the closet. He moved like a wary cat, hesitating between the closet door and Gladio. Finally, he yanked the hood lower over his eyes and climbed awkwardly into Gladio’s lap, curling up against his chest in as small a ball as he could possibly make. He wiped at his eyes with the sleeve of the hoodie, but didn’t make a sound.

Gladio gingerly wrapped his arms around his boyfriend and tried not to worry about how very _small_ Prompto felt in his hold. He made sure to keep his embrace loose enough that Prompto wouldn’t feel trapped, even though all he wanted to do was crush the smaller man to him and soothe away the worries of the world that had reduced him to this. Questions and concerns hammered at his brain--What had upset Prompto this much? Was it something he’d done? What could he possibly do to fix it?--but he carefully kept them contained behind his teeth. Interrogations weren’t going to help this. He had to be patient--never really one of his strong suits when someone he loved was hurting--and wait for Prompto to feel comfortable enough to talk to him of his own accord.

Once Prompto seemed to have settled, Gladio began to rock back and forth, just a little, and whispered a repeating string of things he hoped Prompto found comforting. “Shhh. I’m here. I’ve got you. You’re okay. I’m here.”

They sat on the floor of Prompto’s room like that for a long time, Gladio’s big hands rubbing gentle circles on Prompto’s back, and Prompto very, very slowly relaxing into Gladio’s chest. Every now and then, Prompto would sniffle or hiccough or whimper quietly, but he didn’t move except to snuggle incrementally closer.

Finally, Gladio worked up the courage to whisper, “You okay?”

Prompto nodded against Gladio’s chest and wiped at his face with his sleeve again. “S-sorry, Gladio.”

“Hey, shhh, it’s okay,” Gladio whispered, daring to pull him a little closer. He pressed a soft kiss to the top of Prompto’s head. “Don’t apologize. Nothin’ to be sorry for.”

“I ruined our date,” Prompto mumbled into Gladio’s chest. He shifted a little, his hood bunching up beside his face. “And your hoodie. And your suit. And...and everything.”

Gladio frowned and rubbed one hand up and down Prompto’s arm. “You didn’t ruin anything, babe. I don’t care about any of that. I just...are you okay? Think you can tell me what happened? It’s okay if you can’t yet. Promise.”

Prompto sucked in a few deep, shuddering breaths. Just when Gladio was pretty sure the explanation would have to wait, he whispered, “It sounds so stupid…”

“It’s not stupid,” Gladio assured gently. He had no idea what “it” was, but he wasn’t going to be that jackass who invalidated his boyfriend’s feelings, no matter what they were. “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to. It’s okay.”

Prompto shook his head against Gladio’s chest, but didn’t pull away. He ran his sleeve over his face again. “Noct told you Fall makes me weird, right? Well, I...you told me to wear the suit, but...I, um...I couldn’t decide what tie to wear. I mean, I’ve only got two, but I just couldn’t pick. And it just kind of...freaked me out, I guess? And then I felt stupid for freaking out, which just made me freak out more, and...it just kind of...got worse from there. Because I’m a mess. And...I didn’t...didn’t want you to see me like this…”

He broke off in a low, frustrated groan and yanked the hood of the sweatshirt down over his face, mumbling another string of apologies.

“Hey, shhhh, it’s okay,” Gladio repeated in a gentle whisper, pulling Prompto a little closer. He couldn’t help but wonder how often Noct or Ignis had seen Prompto like this. Why had they never told him how bad it got? He could have-- _no_ , he interrupted himself. It didn’t do either of them any good to worry about what he could have done. He had to be here and now with Prompto, had to figure out some way to calm him down and convince him that everything was all right. “Iggy asked me to come in. Said you did better with hugs, but he and Noct couldn’t get here in time. Sorry you’re stuck with me.”

Prompto made a soft, strange noise somewhere between a snort and a sob. After a long moment, he muttered, “Thanks. For coming in.”

“Any time,” Gladio promised, starting to rub gentle circles on Prompto’s back again. “Meant what I said earlier. I love you, Prom, and I want you to be able to talk to me and just...relax around me. You don’t have to have any answers now, but...think you could think about how I can help you do that?”

Prompto hesitated, then nodded against Gladio’s chest.

They sat on the floor for a while longer before Gladio’s legs started to fall asleep under Prompto’s weight. He kissed the top of Prompto’s head through the hood of the sweatshirt and squeezed him a little closer. “Hey, here’s an idea. How about we go sit on the couch and I’ll make dinner? Then you don’t have to worry about the tie.”

When Prompto managed to speak again, his voice was soft and thick with was probably exhaustion. “Don’t think I have anything to make.”

“Then we’ll order a pizza or something.” Gingerly, Gladio hooked one arm under Prompto’s knees and picked him up as he rolled carefully to his feet. He winced at the pins and needles in his legs, but managed to carry Prompto into the living room without tripping over himself. Gently, he set his boyfriend on the couch, tucked a throw blanket up around his shoulders, took a half-step away, and paused. “You gonna be okay if I check the kitchen?”

Prompto nodded without hesitation and, for the first time since Gladio had found him in the closet, carefully pulled back his hood. He smiled, but it was a pale, tired echo of his normally bright, carefree grin. “Yeah, I’ll be fine. Thanks, Big Guy.”

“Yeah.” Gladio studied him for another long moment, considering. Then he bent down, kissed Prompto’s forehead, and slipped into the kitchen, already cursing himself. He didn’t make the first move, damn it. That wasn’t him. It was too easy to make someone feel like he was trying to pressure them into something, even though he’d never even considered doing something like that. With his physical presence and his loud voice and his occasional emotional clumsiness, he knew he came across as intimidating, and someone like Prompto would all too easily stumble into doing something just because they interpreted his actions as some sort of pressure or coercion. That was the absolute last thing in the world he wanted for anyone, but especially someone he loved.

But here he was, having just kissed Prompto’s forehead--the closest they’d gotten to a real kiss--and just after finding his boyfriend curled up in the corner of a closet over the dilemma of choosing a tie. Sure, Ignis had told him to take the initiative here, but not like _that_ ! Gods, what was _wrong_ with him?!

He dug through the refrigerator and kitchen cabinets and grumbled to himself as he realized Prompto had been right. There really wasn’t much in this kitchen--some questionable vegetables, a can of whipped cream, and a quarter of a block of cheese in the fridge, and two tins of hot chocolate mix, a half-eaten loaf of bread, and a mostly-empty jar of peanut butter in the cabinet. He’d have to talk to Iggy about getting Prom some better food. Then again, Prompto had all but moved in with Noct over the last few months, and would pretty much be living with the prince again once the festivals were over.

Maybe Gladio should just ask Prompto to move in with him for a while.

He nearly slammed the cabinet shut at that thought. _Get a grip, Amicitia. First kissing him like that and now thinking about asking him to move in? Dad would be ashamed._

For a long moment, he stood braced against the kitchen counter, fighting with himself. He wanted to take care of Prompto, but he wasn’t sure how. He hadn’t known Prompto his whole life, like he had Noct and Iggy. He knew the basics, sure--favorite foods, favorite video games, preferred music genres, fighting style, Prompto’s penchant for photography and fondness of animals--but that didn’t help him _at all_ in figuring out what Prompto wanted from him as a boyfriend. He’d hoped to talk about it over their fancy dinner tonight, but that obviously wasn’t happening, and he didn’t want to push the issue until Prompto felt better.

He finally pulled his head up and reached for his phone to order pizza, but froze when he saw big, fat flakes of snow lazily drifting down outside the kitchen window. Well, at least he’d anticipated at least one thing that would happen this evening.

Watching the peaceful first snow of the season, an idea began to form in Gladio’s head. Maybe there was still a way he could salvage the night. Sure, all his original plans were shot, and he wasn’t quite as good at thinking on his feet as Ignis was, but he could make this work.

He ordered the pizza quickly, then rifled around in the cabinets again until he found an electric kettle. While the water was boiling, he measured hot chocolate mix into two mugs--one plain blue and one painted with a cute chocobo pattern that, from the looks of it, was probably Prompto’s favorite. Then he leaned back into the living room. “Hey, Prom, you still awake?”

“Mhm,” came the soft, sleepy reply. Cloth rustled and Prompto sat up, scrubbing at his eyes as he peered over the back of the sofa. “‘Sup?”

“Just making sure. Be back in a sec.” Gladio flashed him a comforting smile and ducked back into the kitchen. He made the cocoa and topped them both with a generous helping of the whipped cream from the fridge, then carried both mugs over and plopped gracelessly onto the couch beside Prompto. With another easy grin, he offered the chocobo mug.

Prompto’s eyes went wide, flicking from the mug up to Gladio’s face and back. A faint blush dusted over his cheeks as he accepted the mug and took a sip. “Thanks, Gladio.”

“Thought it might be nice,” Gladio replied with an easy grin. He leaned forward to carefully set his own mug on the coffee table, then shrugged out of his suit jacket and draped it over the armrest beside him. He undid his tie and popped open a few more buttons on his shirt--might as well be a little more comfortable if they weren’t going to the restaurant. That done, he picked up his cocoa again and settled into the cushions, resting one arm along the back of the couch in a silent, subtle invitation for Prompto to cuddle, if he wanted to. “How’re you doing?”

Prompto took another slow sip of hot cocoa before answering. “Okay. Tired, mostly. Sorry about earlier.”

Gladio shook his head. “Don’t apologize. Seriously. My fault for picking something out of your comfort zone.”

“Yeah, you could totally have guessed I’d have a breakdown over picking a tie,” Prompto replied with a roll of his eyes. He fidgeted with the hem of the blanket still tucked over him. “D’you think...maybe we could try again another time?”

Gladio smiled again and resisted the urge to lean forward and kiss Prompto for real. “Yeah. Of course. But, if it’s okay with you, I kind of figured we’d just have a nice, relaxing date here tonight. Pizza’s on its way, we’ve already got hot chocolate, I know for a fact you’ve got a crap ton of movies and video games, and if we feel dumb later, there might be enough snow for a snowball fight or something. Not a bad night.”

Prompto’s eyes widened again and he twisted to look out the nearest window. “When did it start snowing?”

“No clue.” Gladio shrugged again. “It’s really coming down, though. Early for it, too.”

“Yeah, no kidding. Haven’t even had First Harvest yet.” Prompto laughed and shook his head as he turned back to Gladio, snuggling further into his blanket and hoodie. “No wonder it’s freezing in here.”

“Might help if you put on some pants,” Gladio pointed out teasingly, and was rewarded with an immediate, bright-red blush and an embarrassed, strangled cough. He laughed and sipped casually at his cocoa. “I don’t know how your dates with Noct and Iggy go, but pretty sure the pants are supposed to come _off_ as the night goes on, not the other way ‘round.”

Prompto’s blush deepened and he swatted at Gladio with his free hand. “Come on, man. You know I don’t have sex on the first date.”

“Hey, at least we established we’re on a date,” Gladio said with a soft chuckle. He scooted just a little closer on the couch, but made sure to leave Prompto enough room that he wouldn’t feel hemmed in. “Gotta admit, that’s kind of a relief.”

Prompto took a sip of his cocoa and swallowed audibly, leaving whipped cream along his upper lip. “Oh, yeah?”

“Yeah.” Gladio took a breath and held it, debating whether or not he should say anything. Oh, screw it. Honesty was the best policy and everything, right? “Prom, I...you’re sure it was the tie that freaked you out? Not something I did?”

Prompto blinked at him a moment, then shook his head emphatically. “No, dude, of course not. I mean...I’m nervous as all get out because we’re just... _weird_ , but that’s not gonna give me a panic attack.”

Gladio frowned at the nervous laughter that followed. “Prompto…”

“Sorry,” Prompto muttered with a visible wince, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Hey.” Gladio moved his arm off the back of the sofa and reached over to rest his hand on Prompto’s knee. “Relax. You don’t need to apologize all the time. Seriously. I’m not over here judging you or anything, okay? I just want to talk. Friends or boyfriends, whatever you’re comfortable with. Just...talking. For once. You okay with that?”

Prompto looked up at him and finally wiped the whipped cream off his lip with the back of his wrist. He flashed Gladio a shy, self-conscious smile. “Y-yeah. Sounds good.”

Of course, in that moment, Gladio suddenly realized that he had _no idea_ what to talk about. Great. He leaned back, sipping his cocoa, and scoured his brain for some topic that people tended to cover on dates.

“So,” Prompto said eventually, the single word drawn out into a hundred syllables. He shifted, pulling the blanket closer. “You’ve been waiting for me to kiss you, huh?”

Gladio smiled sheepishly. “Uh. Yeah. Noct was right. I don’t like making the first move in a relationship.”

“Why?” Prompto fidgeted with the wing-shaped handle on his mug.

Gladio finished his cocoa and set his own mug aside to give himself time to figure out how he wanted to say it.  He wasn’t normally the type to have trouble with eye contact, or with speaking his mind, but it felt like this was a particularly important moment in their relationship for some reason. He wanted to make sure he said the right things, not just whatever came to mind. Finally, he sat back and forced himself to meet Prompto’s gaze.

“I’m a freaking behemoth, Prom,” he said gently. “If I say I want something, odds are people are gonna fall over themselves to try and make me happy just because they’re afraid of pissing me off. And that’s not how I want things to go. That’s not how any relationship should go, _especially_ not when we’ve got four of us doing this thing together. It’s just...safer to wait for someone else to make the first move.”

Prompto frowned at him as if he was trying to figure out a particularly difficult puzzle. His thumb ran over the handle of his mug over and over as he chewed on his lip. “Okay, but what _do_ you want? I mean, like, Iggy’s always talking about how we have to talk about things to make this work, right? And you’re part of this, too. So...I don’t know, Gladio, I just...I don’t like making a move until I know what people want, either.”

“That’s why we’re a mess, huh?” Gladio couldn’t help the little chuckle of relief. He raked his fingers through his hair and shifted so he sat facing Prompto, one leg tucked under him. “Okay. Here’s what’s going to happen: you’re going to tell me what you want from me, then I’ll tell you what I want from you. And then we’ll figure out where to go from there. Deal?”

Prompto hesitated, looking as if the exhaustion from earlier had all hit him full-force at once.

Gladio had just opened his mouth to apologize and suggest they put on a movie instead when his phone buzzed in his pocket. He dug it out with a sigh and glanced at the text from Ignis.

_“How’s Prompto?”_

Gladio glanced up and smiled weakly. “Iggy’s wondering how you’re doing. What should I tell him?”

“Um.” Prompto inhaled sharply and bit his lip again. Then he gave Gladio a little lopsided grin. “Tell him we’re on a date and we’ll fill him in later.”

 _“He’s fine now. Says to stop interrupting our date. ;) Love you.”_ Gladio typed back quickly, flipped his phone to silent, and set it aside. Then he glanced back up to Prompto. “Sure you’ve got enough juice for this? We can just put a movie on and talk later.”

Prompto shook his head emphatically and twisted on the couch so he sat sideways as well, facing Gladio. He took a moment to drain his cocoa and set the mug aside, then sucked in a deep breath and said in a rush, as if he had to get it out before he stopped himself, “I want more than hugs, okay? I want you to kiss me and bring me flowers and all the little things you do for Noct and Iggy, and, like, I just want to know that you’re actually into me, I guess? And not that you’re forcing yourself to date me, or that you’re scared of me, or whatever.”

Gladio blinked at him and studied Prompto’s face for a long moment. A slow grin spread across his face. “Well, I can fix at least two of those tonight. Sit tight.”

As Prompto spluttered and stammered, Gladio jumped off the couch and trotted to the front hall. He snatched the bouquet from where he’d hastily dropped it earlier, and all but ran back to the living room. With a huge grin, he shoved the flowers at Prompto. “Was hoping to surprise you.”

Prompto gasped, eyes going wide as he carefully took the bouquet. He grinned sheepishly, another little blush creeping across his cheeks. “Let me guess: Iggy told you my favorites, huh?”

“Yeah,” Gladio admitted sheepishly. He sat back down, a little closer to his boyfriend than before. “Idea was mine, though. You know, once he convinced me you didn’t mean to run away when I got you flowers last time.”

“I didn’t run away!” Prompto protested, voice squeaking a little as he crushed the bouquet to his chest.

Gladio chuckled. “Yeah, okay, but you sure as hell looked like you wanted to.”

Prompto’s blush deepened and he ducked his head, the paper around the bouquet rustling quietly. “Sorry. Guess I was trying to still...figure everything out.”

“I get that. It’s...not easy, suddenly getting two new boyfriends.” Gladio smiled sheepishly. “You handled it pretty well, all things considered, though.”

“Yeah?” Prompto glanced up through his eyelashes like a hopeful puppy.

Gladio nearly melted. Gods, Prompto was so damn cute. He cleared his throat and leaned forward a little before he could stop himself. “Yeah.”

Slowly, Prompto’s head came up, his cheeks going an even deeper shade of red as he realized how close Gladio was. He licked his lips. “Gladio…”

“You said you wanted me to kiss you, right?” Gladio breathed, gingerly lifting one big hand to cup Prompto’s cheek in his palm.

Prompto swallowed audibly and nodded in a shy little jerky motion.

“You okay if I kiss you now?” Gladio’s thumb gently ran across Prompto’s cheekbone. “Or is that too much for tonight?”

Prompto nodded again, then shook his head, then surged forward and smashed his lips against Gladio’s without warning.

Luckily, Gladio was pretty much accustomed to hard surprise kisses from impromptu makeout sessions with Noct during or after training. He automatically kissed back, letting his hand slide back from Prompto’s cheek to tangle in his soft, blond hair. After a moment, he dared to slip his tongue out and tease at Prompto’s lips, surprised when they opened without protest and allowed him access.

The kiss was soft and sweet, both of them slowly exploring each other, the faint taste of hot chocolate still in their mouths. Gladio pulled Prompto closer, half into his lap, and carefully deepened the kiss just a little more.

Which, of course, is when the doorbell rang.

They both jumped back, blinked at each other, then burst out into breathless laughter.

The innocent amusement of the moment reminded Gladio of those first kisses with Ignis years ago, when they were both fumbling through figuring out their own identities and desires. Back before they were a comfortable old couple who knew each other inside and out. He’d almost forgotten how thrilling those first few kisses could be.

“Pizza,” Prompto managed between his lingering giggles. “It’s probably the pizza.”

“I’ll get it,” Gladio offered, unable to stop grinning. He leaned forward to brush his lips gently against Prompto’s again before sliding off the couch and padding his way toward the front door.

This was infinitely better than some stuffy, fancy restaurant.


	5. Chapter 5

Prompto practically vibrated on the couch as Gladio got the pizza. Gladio had kissed him! _Finally_! Well, technically, he’d kissed Gladio, but it still counted. Gladio had brought him his favorite flowers and they’d _finally kissed_! That made up for the exhaustion of the panic attack, and for feeling dumb for freaking out over not being able to pick a tie, and for sobbing into Gladio’s dress shirt. By, like, tenfold.

Sure, he was still ready to keel over and pass out, but now he had a great reason to stay awake for a while longer.

He grinned widely at his boyfriend as Gladio returned with the pizza and slid it onto the coffee table with a flourish.

“Plates?” Gladio asked, already turning for the kitchen.

Prompto, not at all sure where the bravery came from, grabbed Gladio’s wrist to stop him. “Don’t need ‘em. Just...sit with me?”

The smile that spread across Gladio’s face could have melted a glacier. He dropped down beside Prompto and leaned forward to prop open the lid of the pizza box. Grabbing a slice, he sat back and draped an arm across the back of the couch.

Prompto grabbed a slice for himself and, after a moment of hesitation, curled up against Gladio’s side to eat. For once, the silence between them was comfortable. He didn’t feel the need to babble just to break the quiet. It felt okay to just sit against Gladio and eat pizza and savor the memory of their kiss.

By the time Gladio reached for the remote on the coffee table, Prompto was nearly dozing off against his shoulder. He mumbled something vaguely coherent about the movie choice, and Gladio responded with a soft, rumbly chuckle that vibrated against Prompto’s cheek and made him smile.

“C’mere, babe,” Gladio whispered, shifting to lay on the couch and pulling Prompto on top of him. He wrapped his big, warm arms around Prompto and kissed the crown of his head.

Prompto fought against sleep for as long as he could, but in the end, it was a losing battle. At least Gladio was a good pillow.

He woke slowly in the morning, warm and comfortable except for a heavy weight across the small of his back. It took a while for his sluggish mind to realize that he was in his living room, still lying on top of Gladio on the couch, the throw blanket tucked around both of them and Gladio’s arm draped limply over him.

The realization made him smile like an idiot and snuggle further into Gladio’s chest, gently rising and falling with the Shield’s sleepy breathing. He needed to get up and run, but Gladio was so warm and it had snowed last night, and moving was the last thing he wanted to do.

Eventually, though, he shifted enough to reach for the phone on the coffee table. It wasn’t until he was blinking blearily at the lock screen--a blurry selfie of the four of them he had taken months ago--and the text message notifications from Ignis that he realized it was Gladio’s phone and not his own. He smiled at the photo, remembering the trip to the amusement park where they’d taken it, checked the time, and slipped the phone back onto the table.

It was almost seven in the morning--two hours later than he normally woke up for his runs. The panic attack last night must have really taken it out of him.

Carefully, he squirmed out from under Gladio’s heavy arm and rolled off the couch. The living room was _freezing_ outside the blanket. Shivering and wrapping his arms around himself, Prompto hurried into his bedroom. He wriggled into his thick, warm pajama pants and fuzzy chocobo socks, and wrapped another blanket around himself as sat on the edge of his bed and checked his phone.

A couple texts from Noct and Ignis, checking up on him both last night and this morning. He sent them both a couple reassuring messages, including a sleepy-smile selfie to Noct--he knew Noct loved seeing him first thing in the morning, when he was all disheveled and still half-asleep--then hesitated. He wanted to make Gladio breakfast, but there wasn’t really any food in the house. He couldn’t exactly afford to order something--and who delivered breakfast, anyway?--and Gladio had bought the pizza last night, so it wouldn’t be fair to ask him to get breakfast, too.

Which pretty much left two options: bundle up and trudge to the store himself, leaving Gladio alone in the house, or ask one of their other boyfriends for help.

Normally, he wouldn’t even consider inconveniencing Noct or Ignis with the request, especially since they were so swamped with the festival preparations. But it was cold, he was still tired, and they were always bugging him to let them help him with little things. Maybe this time he could take them up on the offer for once.

After a moment of hesitation, Prompto pulled up Ignis’ number on his speed dial. It was way more likely for Iggy to be awake this early than for Noct to be even coherent enough to find his phone on the bedside table.

Prompto sucked in a deep breath and placed the call.

Ignis picked up on the second ring, his voice barely more than a soft whisper. “Good morning, sweetheart. How are you feeling?”

“Better,” Prompto replied, wincing a little as he remembered the panicked call he’d made last night to beg Ignis to ask Gladio to go away. He sucked in a deep breath, then grinned as he tacked on, “Gladio spent the night.”

“Did he now?” The smile was evident in Ignis’ voice--that gentle smile he always gave Prompto in the few quiet moments they could steal together. “I admit, I’m relieved to hear it. Did you two talk?”

“Mhm. He brought me flowers and everything.” Prompto flopped back onto his bed to grin at his ceiling, feeling like a gossipy teenager again and not even caring. “It was actually really sweet. Like, _you_ levels of sweet. You sure you didn’t clone yourself and make it look like Gladio or something?”

Ignis laughed, obviously louder than he’d intended since he almost immediately muffled the noise.

“ _Specs_ ,” Noct’s voice groaned, barely audible on the other end of the call. “Shut up.”

Prompto kicked his feet idly over the side of the bed. “You with Noct?”

“Indeed.” Ignis sighed, asked for a moment, and apparently placed a hand over his phone. There were a few muffled words Prompto couldn’t make out, a bit of rustling, a louder groan from Noct, then Ignis came back on. “Apologies, darling. You know how he gets in the mornings.”

“Yeah.” Prompto giggled. “Takes a behemoth to get him out of bed.”

“And, alas, our behemoth appears to have spent the night elsewhere.” Ignis’ shoes clicked quietly on what Prompto guessed was the floor of Noct’s suite in the Citadel, then a door closed. When Ignis spoke again, his voice was more his normal volume. “I’m glad the two of you are making progress, though. Truly.”

Prompto’s smile grew until his face felt like it might break in half. “Yeah, me, too.”

“Was there anything else, or should I let you go?” Ignis asked after a moment of silence.

“Oh, yeah! Um. I know you’re super busy with the festival stuff, but would you maybe have time to bring us some food?” Prompto asked in a rush. He didn’t even take a breath before tacking on, “I mean, if it’s not too much hassle. I thought maybe--no, wait, never mind, I’ll just go to--”

“Prompto,” Ignis interrupted gently. “I’d be more than happy to come cook you breakfast. Noct and I are taking the morning to recover from the last few days. If I can rouse him, should I bring him along?”

Prompto surged upright again, his heart jumping at the prospect of a lazy morning with all three of his boyfriends. “Yeah, that’d be great. But you don’t have to cook, Iggy...I can make something.”

“Nonsense. It would be my pleasure. What ingredients do you have in the house?”

“Uh,” Prompto let the syllable draw out as he tried to remember what he had. Finally, he settled on, “not much?”

Ignis chuckled softly. “Very well. We’ll pick up what we need and see you in an hour or so?”

“Sounds great.” Prompto made an exaggerated kissing noise into the phone. “Love you.”

“I love you, too,” Ignis said. “Do keep Gladio out of trouble until we arrive, will you?”

“No promises.” Prompto laughed and hung up, tucking his phone into the pocket of Gladio’s hoodie as he slid off his bed. He turned to pad back out into the living room, but startled at the unexpected figure in the doorway. “G-Gladio! You’re awake!”

“Mornin’,” Gladio mumbled through a yawn. At some point between Prompto waking up and this moment, Gladio had taken off his dress shirt, and Prompto couldn’t really help but stare as the Shield stretched luxuriously. “Everything okay?”

Prompto nodded dumbly. He swallowed hard and forced his gaze up to Gladio’s face to find his boyfriend smirking down at him. Which, of course, made his cheeks heat up faster than he would have liked. “Yeah. Um. Noct and Iggy’re gonna come over for breakfast. If that’s okay?”

Gladio gave him another glacier-melting smile. “Can’t wait.”

Prompto grinned back and jumped off his bed. He half-walked, half-slid across the hardwood floor and almost barrelled right into Gladio. In his attempt to stop, he spun his arms in huge circles and would have fallen backward if Gladio hadn’t reached to catch him. He giggled self-consciously, but didn’t pull away. “Sorry.”

“For what?” Gladio asked with a soft chuckle, pulling Prompto a little closer.

Prompto craned his neck back to look at his boyfriend. “Um. Being a klutz?”

Gladio laughed again and leaned down. Voice soft and husky, he whispered, “Can I kiss you, Klutzo?”

“Yeah.” Prompto grinned like an idiot, stretching up on tiptoe to make it easier to reach.

Softer and more relaxed than last night, Gladio pressed their lips together and kissed him.

They only broke apart when Prompto nearly overbalanced again and Gladio had to take a half-step back to keep them from toppling over.

For a moment, they laughed together, then Gladio grabbed Prompto’s hand. “C’mon. Let’s sit down.”

“Hey,” Prompto said as Gladio tugged him back toward the couch in the living room. “We never finished that talk last night, you know?”

Gladio flopped onto the couch and pulled Prompto into his lap, wrapping big, strong arms around him, and nuzzling into his shoulder. “Hm?”

“You never told me what _you_ wanted,” Prompto reminded, gently poking his boyfriend’s shoulder.

Gladio hummed thoughtfully, but otherwise remained silent for several long moments. Just before Prompto was about to ask again, the Shield muttered, “Knowing you’re not scared of me’s kind of the big one. I want you to be able to trust me enough to tell me if something’s bugging you, or if I can do something different. Other than that...guess I want basically the same things you do. Works out pretty good, huh?”

“Yeah.” Prompto squirmed until he straddled Gladio’s lap and could look the bigger man in the eye. He searched Gladio’s face for a moment, then kissed him softly. “I do trust you. I...it’s myself I don’t trust. Okay?”

“I’ll trust you for you and you trust me for me,” Gladio whispered, running his hands gently up Prompto’s back.

“What?” Prompto pulled back again to frown at his boyfriend as he tried to make sense of that statement.

Gladio chuckled softly and reached up to card his fingers through Prompto’s hair. “I meant I’ll trust you when you can’t trust yourself, if you do the same for me. We’ll figure this out together, Prom. Promise.”

Prompto searched his face again, not really sure what he was looking for. Some sort of hesitation or worry, maybe. Something to reinforce that little nagging voice at the back of his head that kept whispering that Gladio didn’t want him, even now. What he found, though, was only soft, genuine affection that made his heart feel suddenly two sizes too big for his chest. It was a similar look to the one Noct gave him after a particularly sweet makeout session, or the one Ignis gave him when he showed up unannounced with Ebony and treats simply to keep him company while he worked. And Prompto knew it was _always_ going to make him melt.

Instead of actually letting himself dissolve into a happy puddle, Prompto leaned forward to kiss Gladio again.

Time stretched out indefinitely as they kissed, hands wandering and tongues gently exploring. Gladio’s skin was hot and soft under Prompto’s fingers, his lips eager and velvety. He gasped happily into the kiss as Gladio’s warm hands carefully worked their way up under the hoodie, tracing his sides and the curve of his spine. It wasn’t the hot, sexy makeouts he had with Noct that almost always led to other things, but it wasn’t the soft, chaste kissing he sometimes coaxed Ignis into during work breaks, either.

Gladio’s kisses were more like rich dark chocolate and warm blankets, candlelit dinners with red wine and teasing, comfort movies and fuzzy socks--the perfect blend of comforting and sexy.

Just like the previous night, they made out until the doorbell rang, then broke apart laughing breathlessly.

Prompto hesitated a moment, then pressed a quick kiss to the tip of Gladio’s nose and slid out of his lap. Grinning like an idiot, he skipped to the door.

“Morning,” Noct mumbled, giving him a sleepy smile as he leaned against Ignis, the both of them carrying shopping bags stuffed full of food.

“Heyaz.” Prompto’s smile widened and he grabbed a couple of bags, bouncing up on the balls of his feet to kiss Ignis’ cheek, then dropping back to do the same to Noct. “Thanks for saving us.”

Ignis chuckled softly as he stepped inside, tapping snow off his boots. “I hardly think you would have starved to death, darling.”

“You haven’t seen his pantry,” Gladio said from behind Prompto, his voice rough with laughter. “Freaking miracle he hasn’t starved already.”

Prompto turned around and stuck his tongue out at Gladio, then yelped in surprise when Noct draped an arm over his shoulders without warning. “Noct! Dude, you’re _heavy_.”

Noct mumbled in reply and nuzzled into the side of his neck. His cold nose made Prompto whine in the back of his throat.

“Do close the door, would you?” Ignis called, already in the kitchen. “It’s freezing.”

Prompto hauled his boyfriend further into the hall and kicked the door shut behind them.

“Is he even awake?” Gladio stepped forward and took Noctis by the shoulder to shake him gently. “Hey, Princess. You alive in there?”

Noct swatted his hand away and grumbled into Prompto’s neck.

“I was gonna help Iggy cook,” Prompto said, halfway between a whine and a giggle. He gently shoved Noct toward Gladio, who scooped the prince up without fuss and carried him toward the kitchen.

Prompto trotted after them and dumped his grocery bags on the counter.

Ignis had already pulled out pans and turned the stove on, but he took a moment to pull Prompto close and kiss him properly. “Good morning.”

“Morning,” Prompto murmured in reply, unable to stop the huge smile on his face.

“My turn.” Gladio set Noctis in a chair at the table and stepped over to steal his own kiss from Ignis.

Ignis chuckled and adjusted his glasses when the Shield released him to turn back to the stove. “Well, then. Should we get started?”

“I’m _starving_ ,” Noctis complained sleepily, his head resting on his arms on the tabletop.

The other three laughed raucously and Gladio shifted back toward the table to rub Noct’s shoulders.

Prompto hovered by Ignis’ elbow, handing him ingredients and helping him mix pancake batter as the four of them chattered amongst themselves. They talked about the Harvest Festival preparations, and what they wanted to do during the celebrations, and new video games, and gossip from the Citadel before Noctis finally fully woke up and turned the conversation to Gladio and Prompto.

“So,” Noct said as Ignis slid the second plate of garula bacon onto the table, “You guys work things out? No more worrying that you hate each other?”

“Nope!” Prompto grinned through his blush and skipped over to wrap his arms around Gladio’s waist from behind, resting his cheek on the bigger man’s shoulder blade. “We’re good here.”

Gladio’s laughter vibrated through him, rumbling against Prompto’s cheek. “Still got to take him out for a fancy dinner some time, though.”

“Why not take him as your date to the Festival?” Ignis suggested.

Prompto peeled himself away from Gladio’s warmth to blink at Ignis. “But doesn’t he normally take you?”

Ignis shrugged easily and dumped the last of the pancakes onto a plate. He turned to place them on the table between the bacon and fruit platters. “This is the first year we’ve all been together in this capacity. I’m certain we can make an exception to ‘the usual’ arrangements.”

“Specs and I’ve already talked about going together.” Noctis grinned at Prompto and Gladio and pulled the entire serving plate of bacon toward him. “Not that I’ll get to do much besides Princely stuff this year.”

“There’ll be plenty of time for you to enjoy the festivities.” Ignis chuckled and pressed a soft kiss to Noct’s temple.

Gladio snatched a handful of bacon from the plate before Noct could eat it all. He stuffed a strip into his mouth and offered Prompto another. “What d’you think, babe? Wanna go with me?”

“Gee, I dunno,” Prompto teased, unable to keep a straight face as he nibbled on the bacon.

“There’ll be chocobos,” Noct said in that special tone he used to convince his boyfriends to do something fun but mildly questionable.

Prompto’s eyes went wide as he turned toward the prince. “Wh-what? Chocobos? Really?”

Noct gave him a huge grin. “Yep. Talked the planning committee into a petting zoo and a racecourse for the week.”

“By that, he means he suggested the idea and left it to me to convince the committee,” Ignis clarified with a fond, exasperated sigh.

Noctis leaned over to kiss him. “Yeah, because you’re the best, Specs.”

“You heard the man--there’ll be chocobos.” Gladio hooked one arm over Prompto’s shoulders and offered him another piece of bacon. “Go to the Festival with me and we can race.”

Prompto made a show of considering, even though the idea of a chocobo race with Gladio made his heart soar. Finally, he huffed dramatically and snatched the bacon. “Okay, I’ll go.”

“Way to leave me hanging there,” Gladio said with a laugh. He ruffled Prompto’s hair and kissed his temple, then flopped into a chair and pulled Prompto into his lap.

Sitting there at his kitchen table with all three of his boyfriends, warm and cozy and _loved_ , Prompto realized that this Fall would probably be the best one yet. Sure, his mood was still a little off-balance, and sure he’d miss Noct and Ignis when they went back to work, but for once in his life, he was absolutely certain that he wouldn’t be alone.

He snuggled into Gladio’s bare chest and smiled as the conversation and laughter swirled around him. Sure, the last few months had been weird, and they still had things to hash out among the four of them, but he wouldn’t trade this moment for anything in the world.

Prompto Argentum had finally found his home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading this little sappy story! I just love me some soft Promptio so much, and I'm glad all of you liked it, too. There may be more later (maybe an epilogue or a separate fic about the Festival or some other fluffy dates), but I'm going to leave these boys happy and warm in Prompto's kitchen for now. 
> 
> Feel to free to find me over on [my Tumblr](http://ignis-sassentia.tumblr.com) if you'd like. I promise I don't bite, and I love screaming about these boys. So much. Thanks again for reading, commenting, and leaving kudos. You all are the best.


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